Renault Sport RS 01 Interceptor is a criminal’s worst nightmare

Forget the Ford Focus or Vauxhall Astra, Renault has been showing off a police car that will catch any criminal trying to escape on wheels.

Okay, so the Renault Sport RS 01 Interceptor is actually just a marketing stunt that shows off the race car and not a new addition to the French police force, but it’s performance is very, very real.

Imagine a 3.8-litre twin-turbo V6 derived from the GT-R stuck to a lightweight carbon fibre tub that helps the car weigh 1,100kg. Then factor in an output of more than 500hp, more than 600Nm of torque and a seven-speed Sadev sequential gearbox. Yeah, it’s fast.

Not only that, Renault has given its RS 01 Michelin tyres specific to the car, 380mm carbon discs with PFC Brakes six-piston calipers to stop it and Bosch Motorsport ABS to further improve its track credentials, which makes sense when it’s been designed to annihilate circuits around the world.

It’s unlikely, then, you will see the local gendarmes pulling you over in the RS 01 because you forgot to pack a portable breathalyser and a high-vis jacket, but the YouTube video is entertaining, especially with former Monte Carlo rally winner Jean Ragnotti at the wheel.

Now before you complain a car would never keep up with a superbike in heavy traffic, the video obviously expects you to embrace a touch of artistic licence. No supercar can squeeze through the same gaps as a two-wheeler, nor will many compete on sheer acceleration.

The video has only been up since the 26th of January 2015 and already it has been viewed nearly 600,000 times at the time of writing so here’s hoping Renault turns it into a supercar we could, in theory, buy. If we weren’t poor motoring journalists, that is.